Nail-attaching machine



March 1940- J. GOULDBOURN ET AL NAIL-ATTACHING MACHINE Filed Feb. 11, 1939 Patented Mar. 12, 1940 Artur orrics NAIL-ATTAC'HING MACHINE Joseph Gouldbourn and Thomas Aubrey Kestell,

Leicester, England, assignors to United Shoe Machinery Corporation, ton, N. J., a corporation Borough of Flemingof New Jersey Application February 11, 1939, Serial No. 255,947 In Great Britain March 31, 1938 18 Claims.

This invention is. concerned with machines for attaching heels or heel-portions to. shoes. It is particularly applicable to the apparatus disclosed and claimed in Letters Patent of the United States N 0. 2,085,851, Gouldbourn and Kestell, July 6, 1937.

The machine of the above nentioned patent has a work-pressing plunger furnishing a liquidoontaining cylinder, in which operates a pressuregenerating piston, together with. valves for holding the pressure applied by the plunger to the work and for limiting such pressure. The present invention has as an object the simplification of the valve organization and, if this be desired, the locking of a pressure-retaining and pressurelimiting valve against yielding; the insuring that the cylinder shallbe kept full of liquid; the prevention of a'vacuum above the liquid in the cylinder; and the avoidance of the escape of liquid from the cylinder.

The above and other objects and features of the invention will be made clear by the following description, given with referenceto the accompanying drawing of an illustrative construction in which the said features are embodied in convenient forms.

In the drawing,

Fig. 1 is a central, vertical, longitudinal section through the head-portion of a heel-attaching machine in which the illustrative construction is embodied, certain parts being merely outlined;

Fig. 2, a perspective view looking upwardly at the lower end-portion of a sleeve member seen in Fig. 1;

member; 1

Fig. 4, a side elevation of means for operating the valve of the air-vent; and

Fig. 3, a horizontal section through said sleeve Fig. 5, a view similar to the upper portion of Fig. 1 but showing a modified form of the illustrative construction. r

This invention is to be considered as embodied in a machine for attachin'g a heel to a shoe and for securing a top-piece to the attached heel, of the general nature of that described in the patent referred to above. The :shoe which is to be operated on is presented to the machine bottom down and. heel-end to the rear. The shoe will beconsidered as being on a last, the cone of which is engaged during the operation of the machine by a plate I. It may be positioned in the machine by a band-clamp (not shown) which is arranged to engage the back and sides of the heel-end-portion of the shoe-upper. The plate iscarried-by a plunger 3 movable in the machinecompression-spring 33 bearing at its upper exframe, indicated at 4. The plunger has an internal cylinder 5, which is closed at its lower end and is of enlarged diameter at its upper end, and

is provided with a vertical rack l on its rear side. With the rack meshes a gear-segment 9 oscillated through connection to an unillustrated treadle. The plunger slides about a fixed cylindrical tube H which has two openings l3, l3. Secured to the lower end of the tube, and furnishing in effect a portion thereof, is a. valve 10 member l5 having a central boreof uniform diameter and in which may be received the end of a piston ll. "An upper enlarged portion 53 of the piston passes through a bore in a fixed bearing-sleeve it, which is screwed into the upper end of the tube I l. Above the bearing-sleeve the piston has a collar 2! threaded upon it, and between this collar and a shoulder formed on the piston is received a piston-carrier 23 having a downward extension engaged bythe forward ends of a forked lever 25. This lever, as in the previously mentioned patent, is oscillated under the power of the machine to actuate the piston fl. Through the piston is an axial bore, the upper portion of which is of greater diameter than the 25 lower. In this lower portion is slidably mounted a valve-rod 21. The lower end of the valve-rod does not extend to the lower end of the piston. ll, but engages the upper end of a sleeve member 29 which is threaded into the piston and has 30 I an internal diameter which is slightly less than that of thevalve-ind. At the upper end of the valve-rod is a head 3! received in the upper portion of the piston-bore. Upon the head rests a tremity against a spacing rod 35, the upper end of which engages a screw 3%. This screw is threaded into the bore in the piston and has a hand-wheel 31 by which it may be rotated to adjust the degree of compression of the spring 3'3. The.. spring normally urges the valve-rod down into engagement with the sleeve member 29. Thus, when the piston H is lowered, the liquid acted on by the piston is prevented from escaping through the bore in the sleeve member and into the space outside the piston through two 1 apertures 39, 39 through said piston from the central bore near the upper end of the sleeve member; When, however, the pressure created in the liquid by the descent of the piston l! 5 reaches a predetermined value, dependent upon the adjustmentcf the spring 33, the liquid will raise the valve-rod 2'! and escape through the apertures, thus preventing the pressure from exceeding the desired maximum. v

of the liquid, the sleeve member 29, furnishing a portion of the piston, is constructed as follows. The central bore in this sleeve member does: not penetrate quite to its lower end, but spaced peripherally around this end are three recesses 4| (Figs. 2 and 3), which open into the bore. When the piston is in its raised position (Fig. 1), the

extreme lower portion of the sleeve member is still within the bore in the valve member, but liquid from the annular space about the piston may pass freely through the recesses 4!, portions of which are at this time located above the level of the top of the valve member it. This flow encounters no interfering elements, either in the space outside the piston or in the passage through the valve member. In this way, the space for the liquid upon which pressure is to be exerted by the piston ll is promptly and fully supplied with said liquid before the descent of said piston, this space comprising that furnished by the cylinder 5 in the plunger 3, the bore in the valve member l5, and the bore in the sleeve member 29. As the piston travels down, the recesses almost immediately pass below'the level of the top of the valve member, the plunger 3 will be moved downwardly, and no liquid can flow into or out of the space last referred tountil the pressure determined by the spring 33 is built up.

Thereupon, the liquid may escape past the end of the valve-rod 21.

When, in the operation of the machine, the piston ll is raised to relieve the pressure, the liquid may surge upwardly with considerable force past the upper end of the valve member l5 and over the top of the plunger 3, gathering on the outside surface of the upper part of said plunger. In prolonged use of the machine, loss of liquid may resuit from this if precautions are not taken to avoid it. In the illustrative construction, to prevent or reduce this effect, a cylindrical shield 43 is attached to the head-portion of the tube II, it extending down into the annular space between the tube and the upper portion of the interior of the plunger 3. The sleeve has a reduced lower edge, inclined upwardly and inwardly and fitting the plunger 3, which slides about it. This guards against the tendency of the liquid to escape to the outer surface of said plunger.

To allow access of air to the space above the level of the liquid in the cylinder 5, to avoid reduction in the air-pressure as the plunger 3 descends, a vent-opening ltl is provided through the head of the tube ll, it emerging above the plunger. Though the vent i5 is comparatively small, it may sometimes happen that on release of pressure a small amount of liquid may be forced through the vent. Accordingly, the following arrangement is provided, which, besides avoiding or reducing this escape of liquid, also serves another purpose. The vent 45 is connected by a tube ll with a small chamber 49 contained in a casing or receptacle 5i. Threaded into the upper part of the chamber is a closure 53: having a vertical bore in which a valve-stem 55 is slidably mounted. At the bottom of the chamber is an opening El with which the tube41 is connected, and around this opening is an annular surface 59 with which cooperates a valve-head 6| formed at the lower end of the valve-stem. The valve-head is urged towards the valve-seat 59 by a compression-spring 63 surrounding the valve-stem. The lower end of this spring bears against the bottom of a recess in the upper surface of the closure 53, while the upper end engages a collar 65 fixed on the valve-stem. The closure has a downwardly extending cylindrical flange Bl, the outer surface of which is spaced a short distance inwardly from the inside wall of the chamber 49, and inclined apertures 69, 69 through the closure connect with the atmosphere the upper portion of an annular space H in the exterior of the closure 53. This closure has a lug 13 upon which is fulcrumed one end of a lever 15, extending more or less horizontally just above the upper end of the valve-stem 55. To the other end of the lever is connected the wire 11 of a Bowden cable, the casing 19 of which is fixedly connected to a lug 8| on the casing 5!. When the other extremity of the cable-wire is pulled down, the lever presses the valve-stem to move the valve-head 6| away from its seat to open the valve. Were the valve always open, it is to be appreciated that any liquid which in the operation of the machine may be forced out of the vent-opening 45 is not likely to be lost, since it must pass through the tube 41 into the chamber 49. It would then have to find its way outside the flange 61 of the closure 53 and out through the apertures 69, 69. The operation of the valve in the manner now to be described provides added insurance against the escape of liquid and also serves another purpose, which will be made clear.

As shown in Fig. 4 of the drawing, and as fully set forth in an application for Letters Patent for improvements in Heel-attaching machines, filed in the United States Patent Oflice on May 18, 1938, in the names of Joseph Gouldbourn and Thomas A. Kestell and having the Serial Number 208,628, the machine may have a stop-cam 81, rotatable about a shaft 88 once during a complete power-cycle to control the main clutch. In the illustrative construction now being described, this stop-cam is provided with means to operate the valve-head iii. The wire ll of the Bowden cable is connected to a lever 83 pivoted at 85 on the frame and cooperating with the periphery of the cam 31. A lug 89 is formed on said periphery and when the machine is in its normal relation, a roll 99 on the lever bears against this lug 89, pulling the wire ll so the valve is held open. Al most immediately after the beginning of rotation of the cam, the lug leaves the roll, releasing the lever 83, so the valve is closed by the spring 63 during the operating cycle until just before the completion of the cam-movement. It will be appreciated that because of this, substantially complete protection is provided against loss of liquid which may be forced through the vent 45.

The other purpose served by the closing of the valve 6| will now be described; In the power.- operation of the machine, and as described in the above-mentioned application, after the heel-attaching nails have been driven, the plunger 3 with the last-engaging plate I is automatically raised, the piston ll having previously been lifted automatically to allow the plunger-movement, in readiness for the top-piece-securing operation. Then, when the top-piece has been positioned below the heel, the plunger 3 is lowered to force the plunger 3 to descend further to apply'final pressure. From what has been said hereinbefore, it

will be appreciated that in the short interval between the descent of the plunger 3 and the movelift of the plunger, consequently, theliquid in the cylinder 5 will be compressed somewhat. When the plunger 3 descends for the top-piece-securing operation, it does not move downwardly so far as it was previously raised, so that the air in the cylinder is retained under some degree of compression. This compressed air above the upper surface of the liquid tends, as the plunger moves down before the final descent of the piston H, to force the liquid quickly through the recesses M and thus fill up the additional volume created below the piston by this descent of the plunger. In the arrangement shown in Fig. 1, upward movement of the work at the time that heelattaching nails are driven is resisted, since for the last-engaging plate I to rise, liquid would have to be expelled through the sleeve member [29 past the lower end of the valve-rod 2. the

raising of whichis opposed bythe spring 93. In most instances, this arrangement gives satisfactory results, but should it be desired that the liquid acted on in the cylinder 5 by the piston I! be definitely locked against expulsion past the valve, as when a particularly heavy upward pressure due to driving has to be resisted, the modified arrangement shown in Fig. 5may .be employed. Here, the valve-rod 21 has a portion ,9! projecting upwardly beyond the head 3!,

through the spring 33 and axial bores in the spacing rod 35 and hand-wheel 37, this portion 9i extending just abovethe upper surface of said hand-wheel. Rising from the piston-carrier 23 is a curved arm 93, to the upper end of which is pivoted a latch 95. A portion of the latch projects below its pivot and at its lower end has an enlargement 9'1, while another portion projects above the pivot and is provided at its upper extremity with a projection 99. A tension-spring I Ill is connected between the upper portion of the latch 95 and a pin I93 fixed to an arm I95 projecting from the closure 53, this tensionspring normally holding the projection 99 in contact with a surface It! on the arm I95. A slot I99 is formed in the arm I95 at the lower partof the surface I 01, and in this slot is received a bell-crank-lever III which is pivoted on a stud II3 projecting from the arm I95. The lever III has a tension-spring H5 connecting it to the pin I03 and which normally holds said lever in contact with a stop III formed on the arm I95. When the lever is in this position, a surface II9 upon it is aligned with the surface IO'I. The lever III is capable of movement I upwardly in the slot I09, when urged to do so, against the action of the spring I5.

When in the operation of the machine the piston H is moved down to apply final pressure to the work, the latch 95 descends with it, the latch-projection 99 travelingalong the surfaces I91 and H9. Just as the piston completes its pressure-movement, the projection passes the lower end of the surface H9. It is then carried under the lever III by the spring II and against the stop II I. The latch-enlargement 91 is now over the upper end of the portion 9| of the member provided with valve-rod 2'! and substantially in contact with it. The valve-rod is thereby locked against upward'movement with respect to the piston I l, the pivot of the latch being in such alignment with the valve-rod'that said latch is capable of resisting any upward thrust the valve-rod may exercise upon it. Consequently, by the piston I? is positively locked against expulsion from the cylinder 5, thereby preventing upward displacement of the work when the nails are driven. When the piston Il subsequently rises'to relieve the pressure on the work, thelatch 95 moves upwardly, "carrying with it the lever Iii against the action of its spring I I5. During this upward movement, a cam-surface the liquid acted upon .IZI on thelatch engages the stop Ill and moves the latch-projection 99 toward the left (Fig. 5) against the force of the spring IIJI, until said projection clears the lever II I, which is then returned bythe spring I I5 into engagement with the stop II'I. As the latch 95 continues to rise, its projection. passes beyond the surface II9 on to thesurface I9? andreturns to its initial position, freeing the valve-rod 21, 9i. I

Having described our invention, what we claim as new anddesire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States is:

1. In a'heel-attaching machine, a stationary member provided with a passage, 2. work-pressing-plunger movable about'the member and furnishing a cylinder with which the passage communicates, and a piston movable in the passage,

there being in said passage and directly connected :thereto between the piston and a portion of the stationary member a space occupied only by liquidwhich in the normal position of the piston may flow freely from the space through the passage into the cylinder.

2. In a heel-attaching machine, a stationary a passage, a work-pressing-plunger movable about the member and furnishing a cylinder with which the passage communicates, a tubular piston movable in the passage, there being in said passage and adjacent thereto between the piston and a portion of the stationary member a space occupied only by liquid which in the normal position of the piston may fiow freely from the space through. the passage into' the cylinder, the connectionbetween the space and cylinder being cut of: upon movement of the piston, and means whereby the liquid may escape from the cylinder through the piston upon theapplication by said piston of a predetermined pressure. I

3. In a heel-attaching machine, a stationary member provided with a passage, a work-pressing-plunger movable about the member and furnishing a cylinder with which the passage communicates, a piston movable in said passage and having a valve-seat, and a valve carried by the piston and co-operating with the seat 4. In a heel-attaching machine, a work-press- 6. In a heel attaching machine, a stationary member provided with a passage, a work-pressing-plunger movable about the member and furnishing a cylinder with which the passage communicates, and a piston movable in said passage and having a longitudinal passage opening through both the end and side of the passage, the side opening being closed in the movement of the piston.

7. In a heel-attaching machine, a stationary member provided with a passage, a Work-pressing-plunger movable about the member and furnishing a cylinder with which the passage communicates, a piston movable in said passage and having a longitudinal passage opening through both the end and side of the passage, the side opening being closed in the movement of the piston, and a valve co-operating with the extremity of the passage opposite that in which is the side opening. 1

8. In a heel-attaching machine, a stationary member, a work-pressing-plunger movable therein and furnishing a liquid-containing cylinder, a piston co-operating with the cylinder, and a shield situated between the stationary member and the plunger, it being supported upon one of these elements and having sliding engagement with the other.

9. In a heel-attaching machine, a vertical tube, a plunger closed at the bottom and open at the top, said plunger reciprocating along the tube and furnishing a liquid-containing cylinder, a piston co-operating with the cylinder, and an annular shield carried by the tube and. fitting within the open top of the plunger.

10. In a heel-attaching machine, a tube, a work-pressing-plunger reciprocating upon the tube and furnishing a liquid-containing cylinder, said plunger fitting a portion of the tube and being spaced therefrom at another portion, there being a vent-opening from the space, and a liquid-receptacle connected with the vent-openmg.

11. In a heel-attaching machine, a tube, a Work-pressing-plunger reciprocating upon the tube and furnishing a liquid-containing cylinder, said plunger fitting a portion of the tube and being spaced therefrom at another portion, there being a vent-opening from the space, and a valve controlling the vent-opening.

12. In a heel-attaching machine, a tube, a work-pressing-plurrger reciprocating upon the outside of the tube and furnishing a liquid-containing cylinder, said plunger fitting a portion of the tube and being spaced therefrom at another portion, there being a vent-opening from the space throughthe tube, a valve controlling the vent-opening, and means operable under the power of the machine for actuating the valve.

13. In a heel-attaching machine, a tube, a work-pressing-plunger reciprocating upon the outside of the tube and furnishing a liquid-containing cylinder, said plunger fitting a portion of the tube and being spaced therefrom at another portion, there being a vent-opening from the space through the tube, a valve controlling the vent-opening, and a cam rotatable by the machine and constructed and arranged to hold the valve normally open and to permit said valve to be closed during an operating-cycle.

14. In a heel-attaching machine, a workpressing-plunger furnishing a cylinder, a piston movable in the cylinder to produce pressure by the plunger, a valve movable to limit the pressure created by the piston, and means operable under the power of the machine for preventing movement of the valve.

15. In a heel-attaching machine, a workpressing-plunger furnishing a cylinder, a piston movable in the cylinder to produce pressure by the plunger, a valve yieldable to limit the pressure created by the piston, and means operable under the power of the machine for locking the valve against yielding and for unlocking said valve.

16. In a heel-attaching machine, a workpressing-plunger furnishing a cylinder, a piston movable in the cylinder to produce pressure by the plunger, a valve yieldable to limit the pressure created by the piston, and means controlled by movement of the piston for locking the valve against yielding.

1'7. In a heel-attaching machine, a workpressing-plunger furnishing a cylinder, a piston movable in the cylinder to produce pressure by the plunger, a valve movable to limit the pressure created by the piston, and a latch mounted upon the piston for retaining the valve against movement.

18. In a heel-attaching machine, a workpressing-plunger furnishing a cylinder, a piston movable in the cylinder to produce pressure by the plunger, a valve movable to limit the pressure created by the piston, a latch mounted upon the piston for retaining the valve against movement, and relatively stationary means with which said latch contacts to effect its release.

JOSEPH GOULDBOURN. THOMAS AUBREY KESTELL. 

